Nexon to split off Mintrocket, developer of 'Dave the Diver'

Nexon on Wednesday announced its decision to split off Mintrocket, the South Korean game company's sub-brand known for its hit title, "Dave the Diver," in the effort to bolster its autonomy and create a more innovative environment for developing games. Mintrocket, which began as Nexon's sub-brand in 2022 under the motto of "creative and speedy development," came up with "Dave the Diver" -- a single-player, action-adventure game that requires players to con

Sept. 11, 2024

Hanwha to add 600 jobs in hiring spree for global push

Hanwha Group’s three affiliates -- Hanwha Aerospace, Hanwha Ocean and Hanwha Systems -- have set out to find the best talent to take the lead in global defense, aerospace and maritime into the future. According to Hanwha on Wednesday, the three firms plan to hire some 600 university graduates looking for their first jobs in the second half of this year, marking the biggest number of new employees for the three companies in either half of the year in at least over a decade. Hanwha Aerospace

Sept. 11, 2024

Celltrion Remsima SC hits record share in Australia in Q1

Celltrion’s Remsima SC, the world’s only subcutaneous formulation of infliximab, has reached a record market share in Australia, the Korean biosimilar giant announced Wednesday. According to data from pharmaceutical market research firm IQVIA, Remsima SC achieved a 20 percent market share for the first time in the first quarter of the year, a surge since its market debut in 2021. Celltrion said Remsima SC gained popularity in Australia for its convenience, allowing patients to admini

Sept. 11, 2024

Strike hits production at key Samsung electronics plant in India

SRIPERUMBUDUR (Reuters) -- Samsung Electronics' production at a plant in southern India was disrupted for a second day by hundreds of employees striking for higher wages on Tuesday, as top executives sought to resolve a rare episode of labour unrest. South Korea-based Samsung, India's biggest consumer electronics company, counts the country as a key growth market, competing with the likes of LG Electronics to make everything from televisions and refrigerators to smartphones. The strike

Sept. 10, 2024

Samsung SDI to sell polarizing film biz to China’s Wuxi for W1.1tr

Samsung SDI has decided to sell its polarizing film business to China’s Wuxi Hengxin Optoelectronic Materials for 1.12 trillion won ($833.3 million) as the company aims to focus on honing the competitiveness of its electronic materials unit, the Korean battery maker said Tuesday. Polarizing films, optical films that allow displays to show an image by controlling the amount of light, affect the image quality of the screen. According to the company’s regulatory filing, Samsung SDI&rsqu

Sept. 10, 2024

Taihan completes Kuwait’s first fiber optic cable plant

South Korean electric wire maker Taihan Cable & Solution announced Tuesday that it has completed Kuwait’s first fiber optic cable factory, as the company aims to localize production and tap into the Middle East’s growing demand for 5G network infrastructure. The factory, a joint venture with Kuwaiti construction and trade company Rank, held its grand opening on Monday local time in the Mina Abdulla industrial area. Equipped with advanced production and testing facilities, the 5,0

Sept. 10, 2024

AliExpress vows to step up marketing blitz in S. Korea

Alibaba Group's AliExpress said Tuesday it will step up marketing campaigns in South Korea with an aim of securing more than half of online shopping platform users in South Korea within three to five years. In a press conference held in Hangzhou, AliExpress Korea Chief Executive Ray Zhang announced the target for the Korean market, which is dominated by local e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. The Chinese e-commerce retail platform has aggressively promoted about 150 million products at competit

Sept. 10, 2024

SK Ecoplant secures $98m by offloading stake in Ascend Elements

South Korean energy and environmental solutions provider SK Ecoplant said Monday that it has secured over $98 million by selling its stake in the American battery recycling firm Ascend Elements, as part of its initiative to restructure its recycling business portfolio. SK Ecoplant had invested over $60.8 million in Ascend Elements since 2022. It sold its entire stake of approximately 9.2 million shares to SKS PE, a Seoul-based private equity firm, according to the company’s regulatory fili

Sept. 9, 2024

APR’s Medicube, Aprilskin brands enter UK market

Korean beauty brands Medicube and Aprilskin have officially entered the UK market, South Korean beauty tech company APR announced Monday. The two brands are now available through London-based K-beauty retailer Pureseoul, which operates both online and in physical stores in prime shopping districts such as those of Soho, Westfield and Oxford. Pureseoul, a leading distributor of over 60 Korean beauty brands, is seen as a key partner in helping Medicube and Aprilskin gain a foothold in the UK marke

Sept. 9, 2024

[KH Explains] NCSoft pins hopes on new titles to stop bleeding

NCSoft is seeking answers to rebound with new titles and managerial overhauling efforts amid its falling stock price, as the first-generation South Korean gaming powerhouse hopes to get back to the throne. Experts forecast that the success of new games NC plans to roll out and reorganization of human resources will determine whether the game developer can turn things around in the short term. Plummeting shares NC’s stock has been practically in a free fall since reaching its peak at 1.

Sept. 8, 2024

SPC chair cleared of tax evasion charges

An appeals court on Friday cleared Hur Young-in, founder and chair of South Korean bakery giant SPC Group, of tax evasion charges, bringing an end to the year-long legal dispute. The Seoul High Court upheld a lower court ruling that found the SPC chief not guilty of breach of trust. Hur faced allegations of instructing group affiliates Paris Croissant and Shany to sell stocks of Mildawon, another SPC company producing flour, to SPC Samlip at lower prices in December 2012 that, according to prose

Sept. 6, 2024

HS Hyosung to showcase advanced carbon fiber in US

HS Hyosung Advanced Materials said Friday that it will present new products from its advanced carbon fiber brand, Tansome, at the Composites and Advanced Materials Expo 2024, the largest composites exhibition in the US, which runs from Monday to Thursday. The exhibition is hosted by the leading composites industry associations, the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering and the American Composites Manufacturers Association. At the event, HS Hyosung Advanced Materials pla

Sept. 6, 2024

SK chief discusses chips, energy, AI cooperation with US senators

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won discussed ways to bolster economic cooperation between South Korea and the United States with a group of US senators on Tuesday in Seoul and asked them for bipartisan efforts to support Korean companies, the Korean conglomerate said Wednesday. “SK Group has been setting up semiconductor ecosystems in both Korea and the US, and through this, we will be able to contribute to strengthening the two countries’ (artificial intelligence) leadership,” sai

Sept. 4, 2024

Golfzon launches hybrid indoor golf course in China

Golfzon, Korea's leading screen golf operator, said Wednesday that it launched its new City Golf hybrid indoor course in Tianjin, China. This new platform offers an 18-hole golf experience by merging virtual screen golf with actual greens, under the motto "a premium golf course that can be enjoyed in cities." City Golf allows players to tee up and approach shots on a screen, after which the screen opens to enable play on real greens. Depending on the hole, players can also make ap

Sept. 4, 2024

Celltrion's Stelara biosimilar receives approval in UK

South Korean biosimilar giant Celltrion announced Wednesday that Steqeyma, the company's biosimilar referencing Stelara, has been approved in the UK, following earlier approvals by Korea, Canada and the European Commission this year. According to the company, Steqeyma has received approval from the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency for its uses in all indications of reference product Stelara, including psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative coli

Sept. 4, 2024

Posco invests $40m to enhance graphite supply chain

Posco International, the trading and energy arm of Posco Group, announced Tuesday that it has signed a $40 million contract with Australian mining company Black Rock Mining to secure natural graphite, a key material for secondary batteries. The signing event was held on the sidelines of the joint annual meeting between the Australia-Korea Business Council and the Korea-Australia Business Council in Perth, Australia, Tuesday. The event was attended by Korea’s Trade Minister Cheong In-kyo, A

Sept. 3, 2024

Coupang pledges over 10,000 hires to boost local economy

South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang announced Tuesday that it will recruit more than 10,000 new personnel as part of its initiative to expand logistics facilities across the nation. This decision follows the company's March announcement of its plan to invest over 3 trillion won ($2.23 billion) in expanding its logistics operations, primarily focused on fulfillment centers, to enhance its one-day delivery service nationwide. The new fulfillment centers in Daejeon and Gwangju, expected to b

Sept. 3, 2024

Innocean to sponsor Pharrell William’s auction event

Innocean, a South Korean marketing communications agency under Hyundai Motor Group, announced Tuesday that it will serve as the main sponsor for the South Korean debut of Joopiter, the digital auction platform founded by global music and fashion icon Pharrell Williams. An exhibition of its latest online auction “Nothing But a ‘G’-Thang: The Art & Archive of G-Dragon” will offer an exclusive look into the personal archives of the K-pop icon G-Dragon’s career, fea

Sept. 3, 2024

CJ to host K-culture gathering

South Korean food and entertainment giant CJ Group said Tuesday that it will host a celebratory event on Wednesday to mark the return of Frieze Seoul, the Korean franchise of the international art fair. This year, Frize Seoul is being held Wednesday to Saturday at Coex in southern Seoul. On the first day, CJ will invite some 400 global cultural figures from home and abroad to a special gathering. Participants include foreign and domestic art professionals such as curators from art galleries and

Sept. 3, 2024

Hanwha Industrial Solutions launches as new subsidiary under Hanwha Group

Hanwha Industrial Solutions officially launched Monday with a founding meeting at The Plaza Hotel in Seoul. The new company, established as a subsidiary of Hanwha Vision and Hanwha Precision Machinery, represents Hanwha Aerospace’s move to consolidate and lead Hanwha Group’s industrial solutions business. During the inaugural meeting, key agenda items included the formal establishment of the company, the appointment of leadership and the enactment of company bylaws. Ahn Soon-Hong,

Sept. 2, 2024